Criminology Research Council grant ; (33/91)
This study encompasses three communities - Cambodian, Lao and Vietnamese - of new settlers in Australia. Interviews were undertaken with members of the communities in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane as well as with community workers, solicitors and police.
The main body of this study focuses first on the low crime profile of these new settlers in Australia. Despite the trauma of internment in refugee camps, the Indochinese in Australia present a reassuring image of quiet and thriving settlers. Indochinese people are less likely to be imprisoned, and are under-represented in the crime figures.
An important issue remains with the generally negative perception that Indochinese people have of the police in Australia. The main reason for this is previous negative experience in their home countries and refugee camps, as well as the situation in their adopted country. This situation threatens to offset efforts of Australia's police to create an atmosphere of confidence and cooperation. Confidence-building measures are needed to help create a working relationship between police and members of the Indochinese communities.
Many problems derive from Indochinese people attempting to live as they did in their home country, which may not be acceptable under the Australian legal system. As the authority of traditional leadership and networks decays, there is a reduction of social cohesion. Although the new social environment offers the Indochinese rewarding opportunities such as increased independence for women and improved education for the children, adverse effects have included increasing violence in the family, soaring divorce rates, and increasing numbers of youth at risk. Traditional customs disappear with the second generation of Indochinese, who are more likely to commit crimes as parents lose control over them.
The research argues for reinforcing traditional leadership and values among Indochinese settlers in Australia in so far as this enhances law and order and contributes to enriching multiculturalism. In this regard, a more self-restrained attitude in some quarters of the mass media would be appropriate.